Fresno State
hindered by injuries
This is the sixth in a series of 13 features
on Hawaii's opponents this season.
When you open your football season at Tennessee, fall camp is no time for pussyfooting around. But every time you scrimmage, you tempt catastrophe in the form of severe injuries.
Fresno State coach Pat Hill knows what's at risk when he has his Bulldogs go full contact, and he even had them ease up on each other last year. That was not an option this month, though, as the Bulldogs start 2003 with a date at Rocky Top a week from tomorrow.
The dilemma turned into disaster last Saturday, as the injury toll from Fresno's scrimmage included the Bulldogs' best offensive lineman for the season and another starter for at least a month.
Junior left tackle Logan Mankins is gone after a torn ACL required season-ending surgery. Sophomore right guard Dartagnon Shack is on crutches because of a high-ankle sprain. He will miss a minimum of three games.
That makes the Bulldogs' early season death march -- at Tennessee, hosting Oregon State and at Oklahoma -- all the more ominous.
Also, offensive line is probably where Fresno State could least afford casualties.
"That's one place where we really need to grow up fast," Hill said. "They're not starting with pre-algebra. They're going straight to calculus in the first game."
If you do the math, you'll see that only one of the Bulldogs' starters on the restructured line has started any four-year college games. The alignment at practice this week was second-year freshman left tackle Chris Denman (6-foot-6, 260 pounds), junior left guard Noah Pouono (6-3, 285), second-year freshman center Kyle Young (6-5, 320), sophomore right guard Sean Finnerty (6-3, 285) and sophomore right tackle Matt Stevenson (6-7, 290). Only Finnerty and Stevenson have Division I game experience.
The line does have potential, and if it survives the nonconference gauntlet, Fresno State should still be a force in the Western Athletic Conference because of its wealth of playmakers.
Sophomore quarterback Paul Pinegar (6-4, 220) was the Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in 2002, and senior Jeff Grady (6-2, 210) might be the league's best backup.
Senior wide receiver and kick returner Bernard Berrian (6-2, 190) was supposed to be the WAC's most dynamic player last year, but he was knocked out for the season with a knee sprain in the season-opener against Wisconsin. Hill said he probably won't be at full speed for the Tennessee game. Marque Davis (6-0, 195) averaged 73.5 receiving yards in Berrian's absence last year and is back for his senior season.
Davis' brother, senior Rodney Davis (5-8, 215), is also a very serious threat. He is the Bulldogs' career single-season rushing leader with 1,586 yards last fall, which also makes the JC transfer the third-leading rusher among all returning running backs in NCAA Division I.
Junior fullback Jamal Jones (5-10, 225), a former linebacker, helps pave the way. "Now instead of reacting, we can just tell him who to go after," Hill said. "He's great in small spaces and he likes to play smashmouth."
Hill said junior tight end Duncan Reid (6-6, 220) is a rising star. Reid is also being asked to replace arguably the Bulldogs' most effective player of the last four seasons -- long snapper Kevin Murphy.
"He was 520-0. That's throwing a lot of strikes. And he's a critical loss in my eyes," the coach said.
Veteran kicker Asen Asparuhov and punter Jason Simpson also must be replaced. Hill hopes junior Brett Visintainer and second-year freshman Mike Lingua can do the job as well as their predecessors.
On defense, the Bulldogs' line is young, but the back seven is loaded with experience and talent.
Junior end Claude Sanders (6-3, 240) and senior tackle Del Hawkins (6-0, 275) started in 2002, and are joined by junior Donyell Booker (6-2, 305) at nose tackle and sophomore Garrett McIntyre (6-3, 250) at the other end.
Seniors Bryce McGill (5-11, 225) and Marc Dailey (6-1, 235) may be the WAC's best linebacker teammates, and they are joined by junior David Adamo (6-2, 235), who started seven games last year and played hurt.
Corner Raymond Washington (6-0, 200) and strong safety James Sanders (5-11, 205) will only get better after starting as freshmen last year.
Sophomore free safety Tyrone Culver (6-1, 195) and senior corner Kendall Edwards (5-11, 190) move into starting roles.
Edwards -- who knocked Boise State punt returner Tim Gilligan onto a deserted island two years ago -- will always be remembered for his role in the annual alterations to the "halo" rule, which affects how aggressively punt coverage "gunners" can go after return men. Now the 2-yard halo has been eliminated, but anything determined as too vicious by a gunner on a vulnerable returner is a 15-yard penalty.
"I wouldn't be surprised if we're playing flag football in a few years the way the rules are changing," Hill said in reaction to the change.
That's probably what it would take for Fresno State's fall camp to lose its spot on the list of the World's Most Dangerous Places.
Fresno State Bulldogs
*Silicon Valley Bowl
2003 schedule
Aug. 30 at Tennessee Sept. 5 Oregon State Sept. 13 at Oklahoma Sept. 20 Louisiana Tech Sept. 27 Portland State Oct. 4 at Colorado State Oct. 11 at Hawaii Oct. 25 Rice Nov. 1 at Southern Methodist Nov. 8 at Nevada Nov. 15 San Jose State Nov. 21 Boise State Nov. 29 at UTEP 2002 results
9-5 overall, 6-2 WAC Aug. 23 at Wisconsin L, 21-23 Aug. 29 San Diego State W, 16-14 Sept. 7 at Oregon L, 24-28 Sept. 21 at Oregon State L, 19-59 Sept. 28 at Rice W, 31-28 Oct. 4 Colorado State W, 32-30 Oct. 12 Southern Methodist W, 30-7 Oct. 18 at Boise State L, 21-67 Oct. 25 Hawaii L, 21-31 Nov. 9 Tulsa W, 31-12 Nov. 16 Nevada W, 38-30 Nov. 23 at San Jose State W, 19-16 Dec. 5 at Louisiana Tech W, 45-13 Dec. 31 Georgia Tech* W, 30-21
